Smart Cities Can’t Thrive Without A Sustainable Environment
Photo by Thomas Richter on Unsplash
Last month, the European Commission adopted new proposals to stop deforestation, introduce innovations in sustainable waste management and ensure healthy soils, as part of the efforts that come with the Green Deal Pact.
Climate change and environmental degradation are an existential threat to Europe and the world. To counter this, the European Green Pact aims to transform the EU into a modern, competitive, and resource-efficient economy, with zero emissions by 2050 and an economic rise independent from resource utilization. As the Green Pact also aims to rebalance the pandemic’s effects, a third of a €1.8 trillion investment will be redirected to its efforts.
Deforestation is a big problem throughout Europe, and in Romania, in particular, it has reached tragic proportions; it is eventually affecting not just the regional climate, but also the country’s economy. In terms of waste management, Romania doesn’t shine its best light either, as it has been revealed more than once that we have become an illegal waste destination for countries including the UK; and we’re not even the only European country to do so.
Many EU countries, Romania included, used to be strong agricultural players and providers throughout the continent, with a richness in natural resources and the proper soils to continue to make this possible. Looking at climate issues in this instance, it is easy to see how they have directly affected jobs and entire industries, contributing to their disappearance - something that, in part, also has a major impact on the local culture continues to be shaped.
When we look at the highly ambitious goals to reduce carbon by 2030 and 2050, deforestation creates a lot of setbacks. Forests are needed to balance gas emissions, and additional plans are still needed to compensate for emissions caused by deforestation throughout every country in the EU.
With so much focus on city efforts and creating more intelligent, connected, urban ecosystems, and considering how much urban living and activity is going to be concentrated on cities over the next couple of decades, we need to stop separating these from the sustainability needs of the rural and natural areas. Unless we find a better balance and connection between urban efforts and ensuring a healthy natural environment, no matter how much innovation we bring into our smart cities, we will not be able to thrive if, on the other hand, we’re left with soon-to-be wastelands as the environment that provides our natural resources.
The Commission now proposes new rules to stop deforestation for which the EU is responsible, along with new rules to facilitate shipments of waste within the EU (and thus putting a stop to the illegal waste trade). This also includes a strategy that aims to ensure proper restoration, resilience, and protection of all European soils by 2050. It’s clear that better measures for nature protection and raised environmental standards are needed, as it often feels that, while the urban areas of EU Member States seem to be on the increase, the focus placed on rural and natural environments proves to be still largely disconnected from its urban counterparts. While the plans are there to do so, it is important to ensure that the correct efforts (and appropriate prioritization) are also there.
